My research focuses on understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms responsible for the initiation and maintenance of steroid biosynthesis in the gonads, adrenal, and brain, in health and disease. We also study the regulation of steroid biosynthesis, intracellular compartmentalization of cholesterol by hormones, chemicals, drugs and environmental factors. Our goals are to understand the pathophysiology of steroidogenesis, develop new tools for the treatment of diseases related to elevated or low steroid levels, and alter subcellular steroid compartmentalization as a means to block disease acquisition and/or its progression. In these studies, we use biochemical, pharmacological, and molecular methods, as well animal models of disease and human specimens, to identify the pathophysiological role of critical components of the steroidogenic pathway. Drug design methods and molecular modeling help us modify existing chemical entities and generate novel ones targeted at key elements of the steroidogenic machinery.

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The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC) brings together pediatric and adult research programs, accelerating the translation of biomedical research to improve human health.